It is well known to provide fluid dispensers for use in restaurants, factories, hospitals, bathrooms and the home. These dispensers may contain one of a number of products such as, for example, soap, anti-bacterial cleansers, disinfectants, and lotions. Dispensers often include some type of manual pump actuation mechanism where the user pushes or pulls a lever to dispense a quantity of fluid, as is known in the art. Alternatively, “hands-free” automatic dispensers may also be utilized where the user simply places one or both hands underneath a sensor and a quantity of fluid is dispensed. Similar types of dispensers may be used to dispense powder or aerosol materials.
Product dispensers are commonly configured to be mounted to a wall or other vertical surface, with the product being dispensed from an outlet near the bottom of the dispenser. It is also known that dispensers may be integrated into a countertop near a sink basin, with certain components of the dispensing system being located beneath the countertop, and other components, including an outlet, being located above the countertop. These types of dispensers are often referred to as counter-mount dispensing systems. Various other configurations of dispensers are also known, including table-top style dispensers that rest on a horizontal surface such as a counter or table top, or stand mounted dispensing systems that attach to a mounting pole.
In the case of manually actuated wall mounted dispensers, known actuation mechanisms include pushbars that reciprocate and are biased to an unactuated position. Movement of the pushbar causes actuation of the pump, which results in the dispensing of a product from the dispenser. Notably, actuation of the pump of such conventional dispensers requires pressing a movable pushbar that is only capable of movement in a single dimension. Accordingly, actuation of the pump requires that a force is applied to the pushbar at the correct angle to cause the pushbar to move, thereby actuating the pump and causing discharge of a product from the dispenser.
In many situations, it may be difficult or uncomfortable for a user to apply the required force at the necessary angle to actuate the dispenser. For example, where a wall mounted dispenser is positioned over a semi-circular sink, such as in healthcare environments, users may stand in any number of locations surrounding the dispenser while using the sink. Users not directly in front of the dispenser may find it difficult or impossible to press the pushbar at the required angle and with the necessary force to cause a product to be dispensed without moving to stand closer to the dispenser. When multiple users are positioned around such a sink then they are forced to work around one another. Similar difficulties may arise in environments where a dispenser is mounted to a vertical surface between two adjacent sinks, such as in many public restrooms. Again, the user may find it difficult to actuate conventional manually actuated dispensers without first moving to stand closer to the dispenser.
Furthermore, repeated actuation of conventional dispensers with known pushbars by users who are not positioned directly in front of the dispenser causes increased wear, and may cause failure, of the actuation mechanism over time. Each time such a pushbar is pressed at an angle, a portion of the force applied is directed to the hinge mechanism of the pushbar, or other components of the actuation system, rather than into the pump actuation mechanism to cause dispensing of a product. This repeated and continuous stress may result in failure of the actuation mechanisms, or in less than optimum performance. In addition, in cases where the input force applied by a user is not efficiently transferred to the pump mechanism of the dispenser, a greater input force will be required, making use of the dispenser more difficult.
Thus, there is a need for an improved manual actuation device for a dispenser that alleviates one or more of the deficiencies of the prior art, as discussed above.